The US dairy industry is really struggling to survive. Milk prices are depreciated which is causing significant financial hardship. In Canada, this seems to a bit of a foreign concept considering that Canadian dairies are supply managed. The current situation will definitely provide argument from the US to file to WTO and will entice Canadian… Read More
Category: Canadian Agriculture Policy
The following is the official press release from AFSC on the Cattle Price Insurance Program CPIP. This truly is a revolutionary program that will allow Albertan cattle feeders to hedge some risk. I have not fully investigated the nuts and bolts of the program but I think on the surface it is a great step… Read More
I had a subscription to TIME magazine and I will be cancelling it based on the unfounded rhetoric the magazine has recently published. Writer Brian Walsh penned the cover story entitled, “The Real Cost of Cheap Food.” To say that this one sided article has raised the ire of the agricultural industry would be an… Read More
The following article was originally from SiemensSays.com. I think it is a very insightful analysis into the recent announcements in the pork industry. Loan guarantees will help some producers. But, what is the criteria for a viable hog operation? The Canadian industry is currently losing $30 million a week. The situation is deteriorating daily. The… Read More
At the International Livestock Congress I talked to Dr. Alastair Cribb, Dean. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Calgary about the balance between making decisions based on science versus emotion. Sometimes this can be a very grey area and will continue to be in the future as both scientific advancement and emotions increase. See more ILC… Read More
At the International Livestock Congress, I spoke to Dennis Laycraft, Executive Vice President with the Canadian Cattlemans Association about the future realities of MCOOL. Many livestock producers on both sides of the border are very curious at to what will be the impact of this legislation. I have heard several Americans call MCOOL not food… Read More
MCOOL has become a reality for the US, Canadian and beef industry. Sometimes it is beneficial to better understand an issue or situation by stepping back and examining how we got here. I asked Dennis Laycraft of the Canadian Cattleman’s Association at the International Livestock Congress to provide me with a history of the MCOOL legislation and what could… Read More
With the event of H1N1 poultry food safety has become a very popular topic amongst the general public not just agriculturalists. At the International Livestock Congress in Calgary, I talked to Barbara Beane of KFC about how KFC is bringing innovative and new products to the marketplace. We also discussed how KFC manages food safety. Check out additional International… Read More
This spring, I met with Lillian Schaer of FoodandFarmingCanada.com , to discuss some of the issues related to the urban pesticides ban in Ontario. I was first exposed to this issue during an interview that I did with Jay Bradshaw, President of Syngenta Canada. The following is an update on the situation. The following was… Read More
Talking to hog producers in Manitoba, there is a real head scratching issue taking place. Hog producers are strongly criticizing the provincial government for not stepping up to compensate hog farmers for this terrible economic environment. The province think that it is a Federal government issue but others disagree. My friend journalism friend Harry Siemens… Read More